Joint Statement on the Joint Action Plan to Eliminate Racial and Ethnic Discrimination and Promote Equality
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UNITED STATES MISSION TO THE UNITED NATIONS
Office of Press and Public Diplomacy
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 3, 2023
Joint Statement on the Joint Action Plan to Eliminate Racial and Ethnic Discrimination and Promote Equality
Today, Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield joined Brazil’s Minister of Racial Equality Anielle Franco to reaffirm President Biden and President Lula’s commitment to reinvigorate the U.S.-Brazil Joint Action Plan to Eliminate Racial and Ethnic Discrimination and Promote Equality (JAPER). On the heels of the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues in April, and in advance of the second session of the UN Permanent Forum on People of African Descent, which will take place May 30 – June 2 in New York, Ambassador Thomas-Greenfield and Minister Franco reiterated the U.S. government’s desire to collaborate closely with the Government of Brazil to advance equity for marginalized racial and ethnic communities, including people of African descent and Indigenous communities, in Brazil and in the United States. Ambassador Thomas-Greenfield and Minister Franco:
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Welcomed the May 23 U.S.-Brazil High Level Dialogue on JAPER to take place in Brasilia that will establish a comprehensive bilateral workplan and bilateral working groups to address social barriers for people of African descent, in both the United States and Brazil, with priority areas addressing access to education; access to health; addressing violence; and nurturing culture and preserving memory.
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Highlighted that JAPER will support Afro-Brazilian and African American talent by: connecting U.S. based Historically Black Colleges and Universities with Universities in Brazil; providing career coaching and training to women of African descent in the media and community journalism in Brazil; and advancing the POWER initiative “Black Stars Rising” that mentors and funds tech start-ups.
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Announced a $500 thousand funding opportunity for eliminating barriers to inclusion for marginalized and underserved communities through training of civil society leaders and building civil society and community networks in Brazil.
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Took note of the international Anti-Racist Cities Network launched by the mayor of the City of Rio de Janeiro at the Cities Summit of the Americas in Denver on April 27.
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Noted other initiatives that the United States is supporting in order to advance social inclusion and racial equity: Podcast for Quilombola communities, English language learning scholarships for Afro-Brazilians, and grants to preserve Indigenous languages and oral traditions in Brazil.
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Celebrated joint U.S. and Brazilian government efforts toward preserving the Valongo Wharf in Rio de Janeiro, an important historical site for Afro-Brazilians and a UNESCO World Heritage cultural site, where between 500,000 and 1 million enslaved people first disembarked in Brazil.
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